Russ Dean, The Clinton Chronicle, Abortion, Guns and Congressman Jeff Duncan

   I think I'm correct there are four strong colleges in the 3rd Congressional District of South Carolina: Presbyterian, Clemson, Erskine, Anderson, and Lander. So that's five. And there are several progressive Baptist churches including FBC Clemson and Anderson and Greenwood not to mention their friends at FUMC Clemson, and the trustees of Presbyterian College.

    Clinton native Russ Dean is making some waves in the Baptist world with his new book that takes a look at the myths of the Christian faith. He is also writing columns for Baptist News Global and his hometown Clinton Chronicle.

    Feb 22 he had a piece on abortion, as in it's time to take a look at abortion. About forty years go Frank Harrington, a long time trustee of Presbyterian College and the great pastor of the Peachtree Presbyterian Church of Atlanta had a sermon on the "thorny" question of abortion. He said the "weight of Protestant Theology comes down on the side of the Mother."

      Now forty years later Dean who I champion and delighted to share Furman as an alma mater, speaks as if its a new subject coming down the pike, I imagine sparked by the fetal heart bill in the SC legislature.

     I was proud Jerry Carter, new Republican to the SC State House from Clemson voted against the bill. I have to believe some folks at FUMC in Clemson talked to him about the venality of the bill, the mendacity of the politics of abortion.

     I think there is another school in Jeff Duncan district, Newberry the alma mater of Lee Atwater. Atwater said in his "nigger" memo of the early 80s abortion and gun politics have to take the place of race baiting as it is no longer palatable. The easily googled piece Holy War by Stansell in New Republic makes the compelling case abortion politics as played by the Trump base of the GOP and the SC Legislature, and Tommy tuberville of Alabama are chocked full of "mendacity". Stuart Stevens affirms the case quoting Atwater in the first chapter of his book it Was All a Lie.

     Baptist historian and social critic Bruce Gourley just two months ago made the connection of gun rights rhetoric to the militia rhetoric, the Big Lie that gave us the Trump insurrection of January 6.

    It was NRA Florida lobbyist Marion Hammer who gave the state the Stand Your Ground Law, without which the nation was less likely to suffer the Trayvon Martin polarization culminating with the BLM marches of last summer, not to mention Trump implying U Bama Heisman trophy winners Mark Ingram and and Derrick Henry were sonsabitches cause they didn't kiss up to his version of Kaepernick and the flag.

    As PBS documentaries  of Henry Louis Gates during February Black History month have driven home the point of James Baldwin, every black man at some point early on realizes the country that demands his allegiance is reluctant to give full allegiance to him

      Congressman Jeff Duncan is a poster child for the venality Russ Dean pokes at with his abortion examination. Duncan is also a founding member of the 2nd Amendment caucus, which places him in the Devil's vineyard of the Dark Money Politics of the NRA and gun lobby. There is a great evil Dean fails to confront full on. I hope he will do so soon in the Clinton Chronicle, and call on folks who know better to be brave and make plain to Clemson trustees, the so called good discerning people of Jeff Duncan's district and begin now in the Northwest pocket of Trumpland and fundamentalism in South Carolina to find a replacement.

     Darrien Rencher is a good fellow to consider. Bring Viola Davis and Oprah to Laurens SC and lets have a town hall about the legacy of Lee Atwater.

    You can read Dean's piece on abortion at

  https://baptistnews.com/article/why-we-need-to-talk-about-abortion/#.YD5ny2hKiM8

   Also see my blog of last fall on the politics of abortion "Sizzlin Lindsey."